And it’s got nothing to do with regulating guns.
Suicide is one of the leading causes of death for men, and it’s also the leading cause of gun deaths. In fact, nearly two-thirds of gun deaths in the United States are suicides. Indeed, 55% of suicides are committed with a gun. Of those suicides, more than four out of five are men.
So remember, all the talk you see about gun control or gun advocacy being about murder or self-defense, about crime or fear of crime, that’s just posturing unconnected to facts. Just like the furor over “assault rifles” has nothing to do with actual homicide statistics, so too does the talk about guns focus entirely on homicide rather than the most common way guns kill people. It makes for a better story that way, plays better on people’s fears and fantasies. But in the real world, most of the time a gun kills someone, it’s a deliberate suicide.
Given the actual facts on the ground in the real world, here’s a simple fix that will cut gun deaths nationwide, drastically and dramatically, without messing with the Second Amendment or anything else. |
Given that, given the actual facts on the ground in the real world, here’s a simple fix that will cut gun deaths nationwide, drastically and dramatically, without messing with the Second Amendment or anything else.
Make mental health care and antidepressants free.
That’s how you cut gun deaths in half in this country. Make it so nobody has to choose between mental health care and groceries. Make antidepressants accessible at no cost to the user. That’ll still leave a great deal of work to be done on overcoming the stigma and emotional resistance to seeking help, but that’s Step Two. Step One is breaking down the economic barriers.
This is in no way a joke. Suicide is a surprisingly fragile state. Of those who attempt suicide, only a small fraction ever end up killing themselves. Once that awful moment passes, it tends not to recur as badly. Health care and antidepressants work. They’re not infallible, but they work better than nothing at all, which is the primary treatment option too many Americans have available. A total lack of treatment tips the odds toward looking at that gun, that bridge, that razor blade, that rope, and finding the proverbial permanent solution to your temporary problem. And if it’s a gun you’re looking at, it’s going to do an efficient job at providing that permanent solution.
We know that we can’t reduce abortion by banning abortion: that simply doesn’t work. What does work is providing sex education and contraception. This fact is unwelcome to some ideologues, but alas, here in the real world data trumps ideology.
On the same level, if you want to reduce gun deaths, if you want to save lives, stop talking about scary muggers or cute-kid victims. Stop talking about assault weapons or concealed carry permits. Stop talking about magazine restrictions and for the love of all that is holy shut up about the Second Amendment.
The single largest piece of this problem is the easiest to get at, and it has nothing to do with any of those things. It is a health care problem, and acting as though it isn’t is flatly dishonest.
So until I hear either pro-gun or anti-gun forces talking about suicide prevention, about pills and counselors, about the vast number of men and women who can be helped by systems we already need, it’s going to be a lot harder for me to believe they’re serious about preventing deaths. It feels a little too much like campaigning against automobile deaths without ever mentioning seat belts.
Photo—Westside Shooter/Flickr
I think we need to go beyond just therapy and medications. Those things can be part of the solution, perhaps, but what really needs to happen is a concerted effort to remove the stigma surrounding mental illness in our society. Hopefully, someday, a person will be just as comfortable talking about their bipolar disorder as another person talking about their cancer.
I hate articles like this. I get depressed all the time. But I would never ever go on anti-depressants and I don’t think anti-depressants are much of a solution. Same is true of most other psychiatric medications. There are more of a trap than anything else. Consider for instance, David Foster Wallace. He tried anti-depressants, found they had side-effects, tried to wean himself off of them, returned to them when the depression returned but found they didn’t work anymore. Finally he committed suicide. I have a bipolar friend on psychiatric medication. He has gone manic six times while on prescribed… Read more »
A suicide is attempted every 6 seconds. Think about that. And then think about it again. Mental health is definitely the main issue. Our nation’s tendency to have gut reactions to issues is what led to defunding the mental health system in the first place, just as the gut reaction to a lot of tragedies has to been to blame the tool used. Instead of punishing the doctors and hospitals directly responsible for abuses, they defunded all of them, hurting all current and future patients. Many of whom are now a large percentage of the homeless. Like Paige pointed out,… Read more »
Lithium, is often used for Bi-polar disorders and the levels have to be closely monitored. The reason for monitoring is so that it can be determined the exact level that works for the patient. If someone doesn’t follow up with their doctor, the medication can negatively affect the patient. Something as simple as missing a dose could have adverse affects. Medications are expensive and a lot of people may see a doc but don’t take meds when they should which could have a poor result. In a recent government mandate, “mental health” is now to be treated as any other… Read more »
Hi Noah
Have you compared suicide rates in welfare nations with free healthcare and inexpensive( or free) antidepressants with the suicide rates in America?
You should .
Right on
Yes!
Brave piece, Noah. A modern, modest proposal, eh? Perhaps too logical to cut through the noise? How we wish that people understood.
I agree we need to be talking more about suicide prevention, that’s for sure. I’m not so sure that what you’re proposing is the answer to that. First of all, a lot of people who commit suicide ARE on antidepressants. It doesn’t mean they’re on the right ones, or in the right dosage. Doctors who are not trained in psychology are handing out pills like candy, and if anything that can actually lead to MORE suicide. Many people become suicidal as a result of being on the wrong drug, at the wrong dosage, and/or because they feel better and try… Read more »
You hit the nail on the head when you said dr’s giving them out like candy. If people could get the mental health care they need for free, they wouldn’t have to rely on their general practitioner for mental health help, they could actually get counseling and get the right meds
Yes, for sure, at least they’d have a better chance of getting the right meds.
But even with counseling, it can be hit or miss sometimes as far as finding the right drug and the right dosage, and meanwhile it’s not at all uncommon to have suicidal episodes. Nor is it uncommon for someone to get counseling at first but then stop going, and then stop taking their meds too suddenly, etc. which seems to be a big danger zone for suicide.
“You hit the nail on the head when you said dr’s giving them out like candy. If people could get the mental health care they need for free, they wouldn’t have to rely on their general practitioner for mental health help, they could actually get counseling and get the right meds”
People tend to demand – and receive – higher quality care (in ANY service, not just health) when they are responsible for the cost. Some amount of partial subsidies (varying depending on ability to provide) are better than just flat-out free.